If you can build a foosball table, a desk or an entire full-scale chapel out of cardboard, perhaps it’s not too surprising that this notoriously flimsy material can form the basis of a working Fender Stratocaster guitar. Signal Snowboards previously teamed up with Ernest Packaging to create a corrugated cardboard surfboard, and now they’ve built a custom Strat that even impressed the expert guitar techs at Fender.

The way the cardboard is assembled and shaped makes it surprisingly structurally sound, which is a good thing considering the strings put about 250 pounds of torque on the neck of the guitar. Once it was all glued together, Signal took it to Fender and had their techs cut it into shape and add three 50s single coil pickups, a Stat scratch plate and other Fender components. When held up to light, the body and neck of the corrugated Fender is nearly see-through.

Check out this video to watch the entire building process and listen to the cardboard Fender in action. “The fact that it plays at all is kid of remarkable, honestly,” says Dennis Galuszka, Fender Master Builder. “It’s cardboard.”

Automobile owners in Amsterdam are waking up to find that their cars have been ‘customized’ overnight with cardboard and masking tape. Suddenly, their boring old sedans boast body fenders, spoilers, grilles and hood scoops. You’re welcome, says artist Max Sidentopf, creator of the ‘Slapdash Supercars’ project. Maybe the new additions won’t even survive a quick trip down the street, but that’s not really the point.

“Individuality, self-expression, and status are more important than ever these days,” Sidentopf tells Vice. “But for some reason you see that things as ordinary as cars are getting personalized less and less, while it could be a strange but great form of self-expression. I thought I’d do people a favor by giving them a custom-made supercar.”

The result is undeniably goofy, and the reaction of the owner is probably a test of both their sense of humor and how precious they are about their vehicles, since not everybody is crazy about the idea of strangers clambering all over their cars and leaving tape residue behind after the customizations have been removed.

It’s a simple prank, and a funny way to remind people of the creative possibilities in each day, whether you have any desire to actually pimp your ride or not.

Flimsy and disposable, cardboard doesn’t exactly seem like a natural fit for applications like architecture, furniture, surfboards or bike helmets, yet these 13 unexpected applications show off its hidden strength. These products and structures take advantage of the structural properties, light weight and affordability of corrugated cardboard, with surprising results.

Cardboard Surfboard

Enest Packaging Solutions teamed up with Signal Snowboards to create a surfboard that won’t disintegrate in the water, despite being made almost entirely out of cardboard. The board features a cardboard honeycomb core surrounded by a thin layer of transparent fiberglass indicated with waterproof polyurethane. The honeycomb structure is so stiff, it can be sanded like a foam surfboard, enabling it to be shaped.

Cardboard Foosball Table

‘Kartoni’ is a regulation-sized foosball table using cardboard for almost its entire construction, other than the wooden handles. It can be quickly assembled without glue, fasteners or tools and you can even print out your own custom faces and logos for the players. The table has built-in cup and smartphone holders.

Re-Fold Cardboard Standing Desk

You might wonder just how strong and stable a cardboard desk could actually be, but the Refold can support the full weight of an average-sized adult. This portable standing desk adapts to changing needs in a workplace and could also be used by students, designers, retailers and emergency responders. It folds and slots together in less than two minutes without tape or connectors of any kind.

Cardboard Bike Helmet

You might think woodpeckers would get brain damage from all that head movement, but their skulls have adapted to withstand repeated heavy impact with a corrugated cartilage structure that separates the beak from the skull. This naturally-occurring design inspired the creation of the Kranium, a helmet with a cardboard structure that allows a range of movement to help absorb force three times better than expanded polystyrene while remaining 15 percent lighter.

An Entire Pop-Up Cardboard Office

An entire home office appears out of a flat sheet of cardboard when it’s opened and laid flat on the ground. This all-in-one cardboard furniture set includes a desk and a chair. Unlike the portable standing desk, however, this design is just for show, and can’t actually support much weight.

Simple Cardboard Cart for Moving Boxes

A handle, wheels and a few connectors are all you need to easily move big, heavy boxes from one place to another – and they’re made of cardboard, too. The Move-It Kit is a set of lightweight, inexpensive self-adhesive parts envisioned especially for people who have to walk uncomfortable distances with boxes in tow. Can’t you just see these being sold at IKEA?

Google Cardboard

Sometimes cardboard is integrated into technology, too, becoming the product itself rather than just the packaging. Experience virtual reality on your smartphone with Google Cardboard, a simple viewer that works with accompanying Google Cardboard apps that add new layers to the world around you. Buy a pre-made one in a variety of colors and designs for $20-$30, or make your own using a provided template.

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Cardboard Contradictions 13 Clever Corrugated Creations

Richly detailed and highly evocative, the miniature streetscapes created by artist Evol appear in the most unexpected places – using the most unexpected materials. Known for stenciling windows and other architectural details onto urban surfaces like power boxes, Evol also crafts entire city blocks from humble reclaimed cardboard and metal scraps.

Taking inspiration from the very cities in which he sources the discarded materials, Evol applies stencils and drawings of rooflines, smokestacks, chimneys, fire escapes and street lights. Spots of wear and tear on the cardboard appear to be part of the buildings themselves.

The smallest details, like satellite dishes, curtains, labels on dumpsters and utility cables, are rendered so faithfully that you’ll take a second look at each scene to confirm that you’re really looking at a piece of cardboard.

While most of the Berlin-based artist’s work is out in the streets of his home city and beyond, Evol does show his work – including this series – in galleries. ‘Repeat Offender’ appeared at New York City’s Jonathan Levine Gallery in April and May 2012.

“Clean surfaces don’t speak to me,” says Evol in a statement at the gallery, “so recording these marks is a process of remembering the charm of a place that will soon be painted over.”

Who doesn’t love art that breaks the mold? Recycled art and design, green art and extraordinary art from everyday objects all stimulate the imagination in ways ordinary works can rarely achieve – and cardboard art is no exception. Recycled and environment friendly, the following artwork is not just an expression of the artists’ points of view but is also a statement about the nature of art itself.

Alex Uribe

(source: Alex Uribe)

Inspired by nature, Alex Uribe creates sculptures exclusively from recycled, corrugated cardboard, both in large and small scale. Featured here are Uribe’s figurative, organic shapes, exploring abstract ideas rather than realism. Just as interesting are Uribe’s exposition of the female form as seen in Koura, Lucia, and Jodi.

Sylvie Reno

(source: Sylvie Reno)

Forty Kalashnikovs in 15 days, by hand, would be a daunting task for most people. She is not afraid, or angry, or bitter, for Sylvie Reno it’s just another day in her studio. She does, however, find relief in her compulsion and obsession with installations consisting mostly of repetitive work. Dozens of Kalashnikovs, a handful of automatic pistols, and more knives than Dexter will ever need, she says she has no imagination, we think she’s not being entirely honest.

Mark Langan

(sources: Mark Langan, Inhabitat)

Looking at the beautifully complex pieces above, we would never have guessed that Langan’s exposure to corrugated cardboard art was purely accidental. Tearing apart some old cardboard boxes, Langan saw the beautifully corrugated innards of the boxes and thought to himself, “…if I were to slice, stack, and glue pieces to each other, some very interesting effects could be created.” With over 15 finished works (and counting) and the seemingly impossible intricacy of his work, there is no wonder he is one of the most popular and well-respected artists of his type.

Dag Weiser

(source: Dag Weiser)

Unlike many of the other artists and sculptors listed here, Dag Weiser doesn’t work exclusively with cardboard. He has works in oil painting on canvas, pastel, ink, bronze, and recycled art from found objects. Weiser’s fascination with cardboard is a relatively recent one. Since he started working with cardboard, however, he has worked on extensive installations and elaborate props and sets. Above is a 1983 installation for a neighborhood Halloween trick-or-treat celebration.

Chris Gilmour

(source: Chris Gilmour)

In contrast to Alex Uribe’s abstract, nature-inspired, organic sculptures, Gilmour’s work is more geometric and usually consists of popular manufactured goods recognizable by the average person. It is also notable that Gilmour uses colored cardboard or paints the final piece to complete the transformation from a piece of cardboard to a finished product.